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The premier international affairs magazine for the Asia-Pacific, covering politics, defense and society from China and Kazakhstan to Myanmar and Australia. thediplomat.com
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The Diplomat
@thediplomat.com
· Dec 3
The Diplomat – Asia-Pacific Current Affairs Magazine
In-depth analysis and commentary on events across the Asia-Pacific region, with a focus on geopolitics, defense, economics, social, and environmental issues.
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We're The Diplomat and if you want to know what's happening in Asia you should read us.
Hello Bluesky!
We're The Diplomat and if you want to know what's happening in Asia you should read us.
The return of the BNP’s acting chairperson is expected to give the party a boost in the upcoming general elections.
BNP’s Tarique Rahman Returns to Bangladesh After 17 Years in Exile
The return of the BNP’s acting chairperson is expected to give the party a boost in the upcoming general elections.
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December 27, 2025 at 2:35 AM
The return of the BNP’s acting chairperson is expected to give the party a boost in the upcoming general elections.
Twenty years ago, India enacted the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), which guaranteed 100 days of manual employment to India’s rural poor.
Last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP-led government virtually rang the death knell of the scheme.
Last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP-led government virtually rang the death knell of the scheme.
Modi Government Rings Death Knell of India’s Legal Right to Employment
The globally acclaimed MGNREGA, enacted when the Congress party was in power, has been replaced by a law that puts in place a discretionary scheme.
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December 27, 2025 at 1:32 AM
Twenty years ago, India enacted the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), which guaranteed 100 days of manual employment to India’s rural poor.
Last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP-led government virtually rang the death knell of the scheme.
Last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP-led government virtually rang the death knell of the scheme.
Tarique Rahman, the acting chairperson of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), returned to Dhaka on December 25 after 17 years in exile in London.
BNP’s Tarique Rahman Returns to Bangladesh After 17 Years in Exile
The return of the BNP’s acting chairperson is expected to give the party a boost in the upcoming general elections.
buff.ly
December 27, 2025 at 12:36 AM
Tarique Rahman, the acting chairperson of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), returned to Dhaka on December 25 after 17 years in exile in London.
In India, appreciation or criticism of a movie is no longer interpreted primarily as an aesthetic or ethical judgment. It has become a marker of allegiance or opposition to the state.
How Indian Cinema Has Become a Patriotism Test
Appreciation or criticism of a movie is no longer interpreted primarily as an aesthetic or ethical judgment. It has become a marker of allegiance or opposition to the state.
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December 26, 2025 at 11:30 PM
In India, appreciation or criticism of a movie is no longer interpreted primarily as an aesthetic or ethical judgment. It has become a marker of allegiance or opposition to the state.
The division of Korea will not last forever. The more North Koreans who know the truth about the Hungnam evacuation, the better.
This War-era Humanitarian Rescue Story Undercuts North Korean Propaganda
The division of Korea will not last forever. The more North Koreans who know the truth about the Hungnam evacuation, the better.
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December 26, 2025 at 10:39 PM
The division of Korea will not last forever. The more North Koreans who know the truth about the Hungnam evacuation, the better.
Today, a newly dominant political ideology is shaping India, the world’s most populous country. That ideology is Hindu nationalism, a movement that aims to embody the modern expression of ancient Indian civilization.
Inside Hindu Nationalism: The Ideology Changing India
What is Hindu nationalism, really?
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December 26, 2025 at 9:30 PM
Today, a newly dominant political ideology is shaping India, the world’s most populous country. That ideology is Hindu nationalism, a movement that aims to embody the modern expression of ancient Indian civilization.
The same U.S. administration Palau relies on for its security is openly dismissing the climate crisis that threatens Palau’s very existence.
Palau’s Climate Paradox in the Age of Trump 2.0
The same U.S. administration Palau relies on for its security is openly dismissing the climate crisis that threatens Palau’s very existence.
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December 26, 2025 at 8:35 PM
The same U.S. administration Palau relies on for its security is openly dismissing the climate crisis that threatens Palau’s very existence.
People in the West say they must avoid a new Cold War without realizing that they are already in one – and China is winning.
China’s ‘Low-Human-Rights’ Advantage
People in the West say they must avoid a new Cold War without realizing that they are already in one – and China is winning.
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December 26, 2025 at 7:28 PM
People in the West say they must avoid a new Cold War without realizing that they are already in one – and China is winning.
The promise of frictionless money has matured into something far more consequential: a liquidity system powerful enough to reorder economies, and elusive enough to escape the laws meant to govern it. buff.ly/PgKfYED
December 26, 2025 at 6:37 PM
The promise of frictionless money has matured into something far more consequential: a liquidity system powerful enough to reorder economies, and elusive enough to escape the laws meant to govern it. buff.ly/PgKfYED
The CCP’s resurrection of Hu Yaobang is not about greenlighting new reforms. It is about undermining Deng Xiaoping’s place in history. thediplomat.com/2025/12/the-...
The Red Séance: How Xi Jinping Is Soft-Burying the Deng Era
The CCP’s resurrection of Hu Yaobang is not about greenlighting new reforms. It is about undermining Deng Xiaoping’s place in history.
thediplomat.com
December 26, 2025 at 5:25 PM
The CCP’s resurrection of Hu Yaobang is not about greenlighting new reforms. It is about undermining Deng Xiaoping’s place in history. thediplomat.com/2025/12/the-...
Three stress tests will define 2026: intra-ASEAN conflict and cohesion, the geoeconomic squeeze, and climate resilience. Can the bloc survive the increased pressure?
Can the ASEAN Way Survive 2026?
Three stress tests will define 2026: intra-ASEAN conflict and cohesion, the geoeconomic squeeze, and climate resilience. Can the bloc survive the increased pressure?
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December 26, 2025 at 4:33 PM
Three stress tests will define 2026: intra-ASEAN conflict and cohesion, the geoeconomic squeeze, and climate resilience. Can the bloc survive the increased pressure?
The ongoing transition of wartime operational control (OPCON) in the South Korea-U.S. alliance is structurally linked to the role and status of the UNC.
What Would OPCON Transfer Mean for the UN Command in Korea?
The ongoing transition of wartime operational control (OPCON) in the South Korea-U.S. alliance is structurally linked to the role and status of the UNC.
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December 26, 2025 at 3:30 PM
The ongoing transition of wartime operational control (OPCON) in the South Korea-U.S. alliance is structurally linked to the role and status of the UNC.
A group of Kazakh activists set fire to a portrait of Chinese leader Xi Jinping and the Chinese flag during a demonstration against the continued detention of ethnic Kazakhs in Xinjiang.
Burning Xi Jinping: Is Kazakh Rights Group Facing Its Final Days?
A group of activists set fire to a portrait of Chinese leader Xi Jinping and the Chinese flag during a demonstration against the continued detention of ethnic Kazakhs in Xinjiang.
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December 26, 2025 at 2:30 PM
A group of Kazakh activists set fire to a portrait of Chinese leader Xi Jinping and the Chinese flag during a demonstration against the continued detention of ethnic Kazakhs in Xinjiang.
More than four years ago, the military ousted Myanmar’s freely elected government at gunpoint. The upcoming polls will be a total sham.
Why Is Myanmar’s Military Bothering to Hold an Election?
More than four years ago, the military ousted Myanmar’s freely elected government at gunpoint. The upcoming polls will be a total sham.
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December 26, 2025 at 1:28 PM
More than four years ago, the military ousted Myanmar’s freely elected government at gunpoint. The upcoming polls will be a total sham.
Demographic pressure is fueling a demand for trafficked brides and sex workers, both from within China and from abroad.
China’s Sex Industry and the Human Trafficking Crisis: A Deepening Human Rights Emergency
Demographic pressure is fueling a demand for trafficked brides and sex workers, both from within China and from abroad.
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December 26, 2025 at 12:33 PM
Demographic pressure is fueling a demand for trafficked brides and sex workers, both from within China and from abroad.
The Philippines is becoming a regional nexus for defense integration involving U.S. allies from around the globe.
The World’s Taiwan Strategy Runs Through the Philippines
The Philippines is becoming a regional nexus for defense integration involving U.S. allies from around the globe.
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December 26, 2025 at 11:29 AM
The Philippines is becoming a regional nexus for defense integration involving U.S. allies from around the globe.
As the U.S. pursues “de-risking,” China is charting its own course from reliance to autonomy.
China’s De-Americanization Strategy
As the U.S. pursues “de-risking,” China is charting its own course from reliance to autonomy.
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December 26, 2025 at 10:36 AM
As the U.S. pursues “de-risking,” China is charting its own course from reliance to autonomy.
Bangladeshis seeking to leave the country are not getting visas easily. The Bangladesh passport is the seventh weakest in the world.
Why Are More Countries Shutting Their Doors to Bangladeshis?
Bangladeshis seeking to leave the country are not getting visas easily. The Bangladesh passport is the seventh weakest in the world.
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December 26, 2025 at 9:34 AM
Bangladeshis seeking to leave the country are not getting visas easily. The Bangladesh passport is the seventh weakest in the world.
India has been rapidly restructuring its military, taking advantage of the fact that it is still technically on a war footing.
The Remaking of the Indian Army Since Operation Sindoor
India has been rapidly restructuring its military, taking advantage of the fact that it is still technically on a war footing.
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December 26, 2025 at 8:38 AM
India has been rapidly restructuring its military, taking advantage of the fact that it is still technically on a war footing.
Sharif Osman Bin Hadi, a figure from Bangladesh's July Uprising, was allegedly shot by an Awami League activist, who has reportedly fled to India
Bangladesh-India Relations Are Back on the Brink
Sharif Osman Bin Hadi, a figure from the July Uprising, was allegedly shot by an Awami League activist, who has reportedly fled to India.
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December 26, 2025 at 7:32 AM
Sharif Osman Bin Hadi, a figure from Bangladesh's July Uprising, was allegedly shot by an Awami League activist, who has reportedly fled to India
Australia’s top financial-crime official has sounded the alarm on the worrying transformation of his country’s economy.
Australian Watchdog Sounds Alarm on Illicit Financial Networks
The promise of frictionless money has matured into something far more consequential: a liquidity system powerful enough to reorder economies, and elusive enough to escape the laws meant to govern it.
buff.ly
December 26, 2025 at 6:40 AM
Australia’s top financial-crime official has sounded the alarm on the worrying transformation of his country’s economy.
Pakistan has stabilized under the latest IMF program. But can it break the crisis-bailout cycle once and for all?
Pakistan’s IMF Program is Buying Time. Markets Want To Know What Comes Next.
Pakistan has stabilized under the latest IMF program. But can it break the crisis-bailout cycle once and for all?
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December 26, 2025 at 5:31 AM
Pakistan has stabilized under the latest IMF program. But can it break the crisis-bailout cycle once and for all?
A resolution to the acrimonious Cambodia-Thailand border dispute seems remote amid their current conflict, but there could be one viable way forward.
Why Peace Keeps Failing on the Cambodia–Thailand Border
A resolution to the two nations’ acrimonious border dispute seems remote amid their current conflict, but there could be one viable way forward.
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December 26, 2025 at 4:31 AM
A resolution to the acrimonious Cambodia-Thailand border dispute seems remote amid their current conflict, but there could be one viable way forward.
Given Thailand and Cambodia’s close ties with China, it is necessary to assess how Beijing views the conflict and how its influence could shape the outcome.
The Cambodia-Thailand Conflict: Can China’s Influence Tip the Scales?
Given Thailand and Cambodia’s close ties with China, it is necessary to assess how Beijing views the conflict and how its influence could shape the outcome.
buff.ly
December 26, 2025 at 3:29 AM
Given Thailand and Cambodia’s close ties with China, it is necessary to assess how Beijing views the conflict and how its influence could shape the outcome.
Bali’s beaches, bars, and luxury resorts hide a chilling past: 60 years ago, these were execution sites and mass graves.
Bali: Killing Fields in a Tropical Paradise
Bali’s beaches, bars, and luxury resorts hide a chilling past: 60 years ago, these were execution sites and mass graves.
buff.ly
December 26, 2025 at 2:35 AM
Bali’s beaches, bars, and luxury resorts hide a chilling past: 60 years ago, these were execution sites and mass graves.